Part of the INST Project - Instantly Networked Smart Triage
A real-time visualisation tool for UWB (Ultra-Wideband) casualty positioning data via MQTT featuring advanced spring-mass physics simulation, modular architecture, and touch-optimised UX design for emergency services and mass casualty incident response.
🚀 Try it now: Live Demo
INST (Instantly Networked Smart Triage) is a positioning system designed for emergency response applications. Developed with funding from the European Space Agency (ESA) and UK Space Agency (UKSA) through the Business Applications and Space Solutions Programme (BASS), INST addresses positioning and coordination challenges in various operational environments.
The 2017 Manchester Arena incident highlighted coordination challenges between emergency services. The public inquiry identified that better real-time coordination between police, ambulance services, and fire departments would have improved response effectiveness. INST was created to address these coordination needs.
INST is a satellite-enabled positioning system that provides real-time situational awareness through:
- Low-cost, lightweight devices that can be quickly deployed for positioning
- Satellite communication networks enabling coverage even when terrestrial infrastructure fails
- Real-time position tracking showing exactly where each tracked item is located
- Status indicators helping operators prioritise response activities
- Live monitoring providing accurate operational scale assessment
"Precision positioning technology made simple." - Joseph Spear, Director of Communications
Ultra-Wideband technology forms the precision positioning backbone of the INST system. UWB provides:
- Centimetre-level accuracy for indoor and outdoor positioning
- Low power consumption essential for extended device operation
- Penetration through obstacles maintaining signal in challenging environments
- Minimal interference with other communication systems
- Real-time performance with microsecond timing precision
In mass casualty incidents, knowing exactly where each casualty is located provides critical advantages for emergency services:
- Real-time Casualty Tracking: Monitor casualty locations with centimetre precision during triage and treatment
- Multi-agency Coordination: Enable precise positioning data for police, ambulance, and fire service coordination
- Resource Allocation: Track emergency personnel and equipment deployment in real-time
- Situational Awareness: Maintain accurate operational picture even in GPS-denied environments
- Safety Monitoring: Track first responders in hazardous or complex incident environments
- Real-time Casualty Visualisation: Live casualty positioning updates via MQTT with sub-second latency
- Advanced Physics Engine: Spring-mass system for natural casualty and responder positioning
- Multi-device Support: Handle hundreds of simultaneous casualty and responder tracking devices
- Triage Status Integration: Visual feedback for casualty priority and treatment status
- Field-Ready Design: Optimised layout for emergency service tablet deployment
- Portrait/Landscape Support: Adaptive interface for different operational orientations
- Touch Gestures: Natural interaction for rapid casualty assessment and coordination
- Incident Command Mode: Maximise visualisation area for incident command displays
- Modular Architecture: Improved maintainability with separated MQTT, physics, and visualisation components
- Flexible MQTT Settings: Support for SSL/TLS, authentication, and custom broker configurations
- Physics Tuning: Adjustable spring constants, damping, and mass parameters
- Visual Customisation: Configurable node styles, colours, and labelling options
- Satellite Communication Ready: Designed for satellite-uplinked MQTT data streams when terrestrial networks fail
- Resilient Connectivity: Automatic reconnection and offline mode capabilities for incident environments
- Multi-Screen Support: Deploy across multiple displays for incident command centres
- Casualty Report Export: Save casualty positioning data and incident screenshots for post-incident analysis
- Real-time Casualty Statistics: Live casualty counts, triage status, and response metrics
- Movement Tracking: Casualty and responder movement analysis for coordination
- Coverage Analysis: Visual incident area boundaries and emergency service positioning zones
- Operational Health Monitoring: Connection status, data quality, and system performance for critical operations
- Open the Visualiser: Visit https://dynamicdevices.github.io/inst-visualiser/
- Test with Simulation: Click
Start Simulationto see demo casualty positioning data - Configure MQTT: Set your emergency communications broker details and topic in the Connection Settings
- Start Casualty Tracking: Click
Connectto begin real-time casualty positioning visualisation
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/DynamicDevices/inst-visualiser.git
cd inst-visualiser
# Start local development server
npm start
# or
python -m http.server 8080
# Open browser to http://localhost:8080# Install MQTT client for data publishing
pip install paho-mqtt
# Use the example publisher
python examples/mqtt-live-publisher.py /dev/ttyUSB0- Broker: Your MQTT broker hostname (e.g.,
mqtt.yourdomain.com) - Port: WebSocket port (typically
8083for WSS,8080for WS) - Topic: MQTT topic for positioning messages (e.g.,
uwb/positions) - Authentication: Optional username/password authentication
- SSL/TLS: Secure connection support for operational environments
The visualiser expects JSON arrays containing casualty and responder positioning measurements:
[
["A001", "A002", 3.0],
["A002", "A003", 4.0],
["A001", "A003", 5.0]
]Emergency Response Data Format Details:
- Array of arrays: Each sub-array represents one casualty or responder position measurement
- Three elements:
[device_id, reference_point_id, distance_in_metres] - String IDs: Emergency service codes (e.g., "A001", "A002", "B5A4")
- Numeric distances: Positive numbers in metres for precise casualty positioning
- Command Post detection: Device "B5A4" automatically styled as incident command post (red)
- QoS Support: Quality of Service levels 0, 1, and 2
- Retained Messages: Support for MQTT retained positioning messages
- Last Will Testament: Graceful disconnection handling
- Topic Wildcards: Subscribe to multiple positioning topics using wildcards
- Compact title bar preserves screen space for casualty positioning display
- Controls panel limited to essential functions, casualty view gets majority of screen
- Use maximise button (⛶) for full-screen incident command situational awareness
- Swipe up in controls to access advanced emergency system settings
- Essential casualty statistics remain visible for rapid situation assessment
- Controls appear on left, casualty positioning takes majority of screen
- Better for detailed incident management and multi-agency coordination
- All emergency system sections accessible without scrolling
- Ideal for incident command briefings and emergency service coordination
- Tap: Activate essential controls and toggle important settings
- Long Press: Important buttons provide haptic feedback for field use
- Tap Section Headers: Expand/collapse system control groups
- Tap ⛶: Toggle full-screen positioning tracking mode
- System Optimisation: Physics adjusts automatically for tablet performance
- Battery Efficient: Reduced animation when on battery power for extended operations
- Touch Responsiveness: 60fps interactions maintained for essential operations
- Memory Management: Automatic cleanup optimised for long operational sessions
- Broker Host: MQTT broker address (default:
mqtt.dynamicdevices.co.uk) - Port: WebSocket port (8083 for secure, 8080 for standard)
- Topic: Data topic path (default:
uwb/positions) - Auto-reconnect: Automatic connection recovery after network interruptions
- Connection Timeout: Configurable timeout for operational reliability
- Distance Scale: Adjust metres-to-pixels ratio for operational zone size (50-250px/m)
- Spring Strength: 0.5-10.0 (default: 2.0 for responsive positioning)
- Damping Factor: 0.3-0.9 (default: 0.6 for optimal motion tracking)
- Node Mass: 0.05-1.0 (default: 0.2 for responsive position updates)
- Update Rate: Position calculation frequency (default: 60fps)
- Node Colours: Customisable colour schemes for different device types
- Connection Styles: Adjustable line thickness and opacity for distance indicators
- Labels: Show/hide device IDs, distances, and system information
- Grid Overlay: Optional positioning grid for precise coordinate reference
- System Logging: Detailed network connection and data processing messages
- Coverage Boundaries: Visual outline with operational zone dimensions
- Performance Monitor: Real-time FPS, memory usage, and update statistics
- Data Export: CSV export of positioning data for offline analysis
Satellite Network ←→ Ground Station ←→ MQTT Broker ←→ UWB Visualiser
↑ ↓
INST Devices ←→ UWB Positioning Network ←→ Operational Teams
- INST devices track casualty and responder positions via UWB ranging
- UWB anchor networks triangulate precise casualty positions using multilateration
- Satellite uplinks relay casualty data when terrestrial networks are unavailable
- MQTT message broker (
mqtt.dynamicdevices.co.uk) distributes real-time casualty updates - Visualisation interface provides live casualty picture to incident commanders and emergency services
┌─────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐
│ UWBVisualiser │◄──►│ MQTTManager │◄──►│ SpringMassSystem │
│ │ │ │ │ │
│ • Node Display │ │ • Connection │ │ • Physics Sim │
│ • UI Controls │ │ • Message Parse │ │ • Force Calc │
│ • Touch Events │ │ • Auto-retry │ │ • Position Upd │
└─────────────────┘ └─────────────────┘ └─────────────────┘
Benefits of Modular Design:
- Maintainability: Easier to update MQTT functionality without affecting visualisation
- Debugging: Clear boundaries between networking and rendering issues
- Testing: Each component can be unit tested independently
- Reusability: MQTTManager can be used in other INST project components
// Configure via URL parameters
// https://your-site.com/?mode=operational&priority=high
// Or programmatically via browser console:
if (window.visualizer) {
// Enable operational optimisations
visualizer.isOperationalMode = true;
visualizer.optimizeLayout();
// Maximise for tactical display
visualizer.toggleMaximizeVisualization();
// Auto-collapse non-essential sections
visualizer.autoCollapseControls();
}// Enhanced touch handling for operations
if (window.systemUtils) {
// Check if running on tablet device
console.log('Tablet device:', systemUtils.isTabletDevice());
// Get current system statistics
console.log('System Stats:', systemUtils.getSystemStats());
}# Python MQTT Publisher for Emergency Response
import paho.mqtt.client as mqtt
import json
# Sample casualty positioning data (matches simulation engine)
casualty_data = [
["B5A4", "R001", 2.5], # Command post to room 1
["B5A4", "R002", 4.2], # Command post to room 2
["B5A4", "R003", 3.8], # Command post to room 3
["R001", "R002", 3.1], # Between rooms
["R001", "R003", 2.9], # Between rooms
["R002", "R003", 5.7] # Between rooms
]
# Publish to emergency services visualiser
client = mqtt.Client()
client.connect("mqtt.dynamicdevices.co.uk", 8083)
client.publish("uwb/positions", json.dumps(casualty_data))| Browser | Version | Performance | Touch Support |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chrome | 90+ | Excellent | Full |
| Firefox | 88+ | Very Good | Full |
| Safari | 14+ | Very Good | Full |
| Edge | 90+ | Excellent | Full |
| Samsung Browser | 14+ | Good | Full |
- Hardware Acceleration: Uses WebGL when available for smooth animations
- Memory Management: Automatic cleanup of old positioning data
- Battery Optimisation: Reduced frame rate on battery-powered devices
- Network Efficiency: Message batching and compression for satellite links
- Tablets: iPad (9th gen+), Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+, Microsoft Surface Pro
- Phones: For quick status checks, full functionality available
- Desktop: Chrome or Firefox for development and command centre deployment
- Embedded: Works on embedded Linux systems with modern browsers
- Serial UWB Devices: Python scripts for UART data publishing
- Arduino/ESP32: Real-time data forwarding to MQTT
- ROS Integration: Bridge for robotic and autonomous systems
- PLCs: Industrial automation integration examples
- MQTT Message Format: JSON schema and validation
- WebSocket API: Direct browser integration without MQTT
- RESTful Endpoints: For system status and configuration
- JavaScript API: Embed visualiser in custom applications
# Development server with hot reload
npm run dev
# Validate HTML structure
npm run validate
# Deploy to GitHub Pages
npm run deploy
# Run integration tests
npm test- Connection Problems: Check MQTT broker accessibility and WebSocket support
- Performance Issues: Adjust physics settings for device capabilities
- Touch Responsiveness: Ensure touch events aren't blocked by other elements
- Data Format Errors: Validate JSON structure and numeric values
- Open browser console for detailed connection logs
- Use network tab to monitor MQTT message traffic
- Check system statistics panel for performance metrics
- Enable verbose logging for detailed troubleshooting
- Reduce update frequency for lower-powered devices
- Adjust physics parameters for system responsiveness
- Limit maximum number of displayed nodes
- Use connection filtering for high-traffic environments
This project is licensed under the GNU General Public Licence v3.0. This means:
You are free to:
- ✅ Use commercially in your organisation
- ✅ Modify and adapt for your requirements
- ✅ Distribute to colleagues and partners
- ✅ Use privately within your organisation
Under the conditions:
- 📄 Include the licence and copyright notice
- 📄 State changes made to the original code
- 📄 Disclose source code of modified versions
- 📄 Use the same GPL v3.0 licence for derivative works
For the complete licence terms, see the LICENSE file. If not, see https://www.gnu.org/licenses/.
For use cases requiring proprietary licensing or emergency services support, contact Dynamic Devices Ltd:
- 📧 Emergency Services Sales: info@dynamicdevices.co.uk
- 🌐 Website: https://www.dynamicdevices.co.uk
We welcome contributions to the INST Positioning Project! All contributions must be licensed under GPLv3 to maintain system compatibility.
- 📧 Technical Support: info@dynamicdevices.co.uk
- 🐛 Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
- 📖 Documentation: INST Project Wiki
- 🌐 Company Website: Dynamic Devices Ltd
- Custom Development: Bespoke casualty tracking solutions for emergency services
- Integration Services: System integration and emergency response deployment
- Training & Consulting: Emergency response technology training and implementation guidance
- Hardware Supply: Complete UWB hardware kits for mass casualty incident response
- Support Hotline: Available during major incident operations
- Remote Monitoring: Proactive system monitoring and resolution during critical incidents
- Rapid Deployment: On-site technical assistance for major emergency response operations
GNU General Public Licence v3.0 - see LICENSE file for details.
- Dynamic Devices Ltd for INST Project vision and UWB expertise
- Advanced Engineering Team for advanced physics optimisation and modular architecture design
- Research Partners for advancing UWB positioning algorithm development
- European Space Agency (ESA) for satellite communication funding
- UK Space Agency (UKSA) for national preparedness support
- Community for operational requirements and validation
- Eclipse Paho for robust MQTT JavaScript client implementation suitable for operations
- Standards for multi-agency coordination protocol compliance
- Satellite Communication Protocols for resilient data transmission
- Device Standards for positioning device certification
- MQTT Protocol for reliable IoT communication and real-time data streaming
⭐ Star this repository if you find it helpful for emergency response and casualty tracking!
Made with ❤️ for emergency services and mass casualty incident response by Dynamic Devices Ltd
🚨 Now optimised for tablets - precise casualty tracking anywhere, anytime!
🛰️ Part of the INST Project - advancing emergency response technology
🏗️ v4.0: Enhanced modular architecture with improved tablet support for emergency services
Copyright (C) Dynamic Devices Ltd 2025 - Licensed under GPLv3
The INST UWB Casualty Position Visualiser - Technology serving emergency response.
"Precision casualty tracking made simple"